Selected Non-Fiction
2024.
The future might be one in which every student wears glasses. In recent decades, the prevalence of myopia in children and teenagers has skyrocketed, becoming a pressing global health issue. The situation is so dire that, in Singapore, 80% of young adults have been diagnosed with the condition, which has led to the country being called “the myopia capital of the world.”
TEACH Magazine. Print and Digital. January/February 2024 Issue.
2023.
Social Media Sleuths, Armed With AI, Are Identifying Dead Bodies
Poverty, fentanyl, and lack of public funding mean American morgues are overloaded with unidentified bodies. TikTok and Facebook pages are filling the gap—with AI proving a powerful and controversial new tool.
WIRED. Digital. November 2023.
TikTok in the Classroom: The Good, the Bad, and the In-Between
To ensure TikTok is used appropriately, teaching kids about the dangers and risks associated with it is imperative. Along with opening the door to discussions of media literacy, the current TikTok privacy debate can also lead to classroom conversations around cybersecurity, online safety, and the importance of good digital hygiene.
TEACH Magazine. Cover Story. Print and Digital. May/June 2023 Issue.
I’ve been sober for 3 years – an app has been key to my recovery
‘Some people are lost in their fires, others are forged in them!’ This is one of the positive affirmations that flashes across the screen once you take the pledge to remain alcohol free by hitting a button on I Am Sober. The app, which has become essential to my recovery, allows you to track your sobriety, build positive habits and connect with other members of the community.
Metro. Digital. February 2023.
2022.
Reasonable Limits: A Look at the Right to Peaceful Assembly and the Freedom Convoy Protest
It's not often a current event can so effectively illustrate how the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a living and breathing document, one whose interpretation changes depending on the circumstances. It is by no means static, and the rights contained within it are not, as many believe, absolute.
TEACH Magazine. Print and Digital. November/December 2022 Special Issue.
The Marijuana Question: Can cannabis help manage your pain and stress?
For people with bleeding disorders, managing both physical and mental health is top of mind. Many people are prescribed opioids to reduce physical discomfort, but there are concerns of abuse and addiction with opioids. Given this, some people are considering cannabis as an alternative method for the management of pain and stress.
Dateline Federation. Print. Fall 2022 Issue.
Reading my diary from when I was a teen made me realize I always knew I was gay
I am confident that, had the Deidre who wrote these words been exposed to healthy representations of queer love from an early age, she would have known that being gay was OK. I wish I could tell her that loving women is a superpower, an act of resistance against the patriarchal forces that shaped her life.
Insider. Digital. July 2022.
Why Shining Girls’ Spellbinding Portrayal of Trauma is So Accurate
For years, I struggled to make sense of what I could recall, pieces that didn’t fit together. I could feel the impacts of trauma and as a child, unknowingly, I suffered from depression. There was an implacable pain inside me and as time progressed, I became determined to find its source.
Chatelaine. Digital. June 2022.
Tiny Love Stories: ‘I Get So Weird Near Girls’
I flew home from Berlin to Vancouver after two years abroad. My mother, Roberta, tasked me with removing my belongings from the attic. I sorted through boxes of memories. Flipping through an old notebook, I discovered an entry entitled, “Confessions,” written in cursive on Feb. 24, 2004, the eve of my 13th birthday: “I get so weird near girls and I think I’m lesbo.” A feeling of vindication and love for my younger self washed over me. I thought I hadn’t known I was gay until later on. In reality, I had always known.
The New York Times’ Modern Love. Print and Digital. June 2022.
With a herpes vaccine on the horizon, will the stigma persist?
I’ve had herpes for as long as I can remember, likely having contracted the virus as a grabbing toddler reaching for my mother’s face. Over the decades, I have spent a considerable amount of time agonizing over how to skip work, school and social events. When hiding from the world, I have tried every home remedy, topical cream and ointment and antiviral drug available. Sadly, there is no cure for herpes, only options to limit or prevent outbreaks. But a new vaccine on the horizon could prove to be a gamechanger.
NBC News’ THINK. Digital. April 2022.
A memoirist finds peace in the Westfjords of Iceland
I pulled nightmares from my memories, transcripts and police records and turned them into beautiful, harrowing, immersive scenes, ones I previously never thought would see the light of day. Before, whenever I attempted to sculpt together a narrative, I was left inconsolable, retraumatised and unable to move forward. But here, in the remote Westfjords, I found peace.
Scan Magazine. Print and Digital. February 2022 Issue.
2021.
The path to Indigenous Sovereignty isn’t through legal weed
Cannabis as a force for good has the ability to empower Indigenous peoples to become self-reliant outside of limiting, colonial regulatory frameworks.
Leafly. Digital. December 2021.
Why I Married My Platonic Best Friend
It would ultimately take a year for either of us to realize that we were exactly what the other was looking for. But, as Chiderah and I embarked on a friendship after realizing we weren’t a romantic match, what we did know is that when we were together, magic happened. It was the kind so palpable, so galvanizing that, in July, Chiderah and I sold nearly everything we owned, packed up what little we could into our suitcases, and said goodbye to our home city of Toronto — a city where our opportunities were dwindling and our cost of living remained high — and moved to Berlin.
Shondaland. Digital. April 2021.
Netflix’s Firefly Lane Will Make You Miss Your BFF (Even More)
Based on Kristin Hannah’s bestselling novel, Firefly Lane follows the platonic love story of wallflower Kate Mularkey (Sarah Chalke) and firecracker Tully Hart (Katherine Heigl). The series sees them through 30 years of love, loss, sex, marriage, divorce and kids.
Chatelaine. Print and Digital. February/March 2021 Issue.
Thanks to the pandemic, a family long separated by an ocean was made whole again
We all make decisions for ourselves that ripple into the future with ramifications for our descendants. I am in the process of remembering, a conduit reuniting worlds. A family long-separated by an ocean can be made whole again. A grandchild can learn the language their grandmother forgot. You can find salvation in the country your ancestors fled from only a lifetime ago. No matter how much time and space there is between us, it’s never too late to reach out and find each other again.
The Globe and Mail. Print and Digital. January 2021.
2020.
Finding Peace on a Mother-Daughter Road Trip in Cape Scott Provincial Park
The rhythm of the ocean’s sway beckoned us forward. Salt filled the air. A bright green carpet of skunk cabbage and moss blanketed the forest floor. The canopy of old growth Sitka Spruce, Hemlock and Western Red Cedar lined the trail’s edge, sheltering us from the drizzling rain above.
Canadian Traveller. Print and Digital. Winter 2020 Issue.
The Pandemic Helped Me Find My Platonic Soul Mate
During lockdown, I found my platonic soulmate—the person who sees me completely and whose love and support is unwavering and unconditional. We shifted from acquaintances to best friends in a matter of days.
Flare. Digital. November 2020.
How a House Party Inspired a Support Network for Trans Women
Taking What We Need skips bureaucracy and distributes funding directly to low income trans women in Montreal.
Reader’s Digest Canada. Print and Digital. September 2020 Issue.
Rejoicing in the summer of cancelled events
I never anticipated that the first summer I’d remember in more than a decade would happen during a pandemic. And yet, despite all the chaos in the world, I found order under these circumstances. For others, the inability to sway their hips to music at a live event or public gathering has been tortuous. For me, it has been meditative.
The Globe and Mail. Print and Digital. September 2020.
Sex, Stigma & Safety: Positive Trans Women Tell Their Stories
We’ve come a long way on transgender rights in Canada, but trans people still face stigma in housing, employment and healthcare. Are things getting better? Two trans women living with HIV, Cassidy Quinn and Isabella Gamk, share their unique stories.
The Positive Side Magazine. Cover Story. Print and Digital. Spring 2020 Issue.
This story was nominated in the “Profiles” category for the 2021 National Magazine Awards.
Toronto Slows Down and Beauty Emerges
A shirtless man sat on a park bench, face tilted toward the sun, mouth open in a happy, exasperated sigh. I felt exactly the same way. We have no idea how long this state of existence will last. It’s both temporary and forever.
The Toronto Star. Print and Digital. May 2020.
Dear Mama: 'You were a superhero in my young mind'
I was only three when my 17-year-old babysitter sexually assaulted me...You pursued justice during a time when criminal charges for sexual assault were scarce. Justice did not prevail, but you did, and I love you for it.
Maclean’s Magazine. Print and Digital. February 2020 Issue.
2019.
Upcoming Hurontario LRT bringing new developments to the community
Since 2014, Mississauga has received applications for more than 15 new developments within a 500-metre radius of the Hurontario and Eglinton Avenue LRT stop.
National Post. Print and Digital. December 2019.
The National Post’s Bruce McArthur Victim-Blaming
For hours, a headline for the same article syndicated across the Postmedia chain read “Bruce Kinsman was fascinated by serial killers before he became Bruce McArthur’s 8th victim,” mixing up the given names of the serial killer and his victim. This poorly copy-edited headline underlined the article’s subtext that Kinsman was a co-conspirator of McArthur and perhaps in part responsible for his tragic death.
CANADALAND. Digital. May 2019.
Marc Emery’s #MeToo Moment: The Dark Side of Cannabis Culture
If there’s a noticeable absence of public grieving over the Cannabis Culture shutdowns, it may be due to a feeling among many in the cannabis world that the company culture fostered by Emery wasn’t always about cannabis. Whispers and allegations about the company’s workplace environment have been an open secret in the cannabis world for years.
Leafly. Digital. January 2019.
2018.
How Activists Are Resisting a Megadam That Threatens ‘Cultural Genocide’
Indigenous protesters are engaging in civil disobedience and facing arrest to fight the $12.7 billion Muskrat Falls hydroelectricity project in Newfoundland.
Vice. Digital. December 2018.
Proposal to pay sperm and egg donors, surrogates spawns controversy
On Wednesday, the 32-year-old was driving from his home in Ohio to Toronto to voice opposition to Bill C-404. The legislation would legalize financial compensation for egg and sperm donors — and could make Canada the new nexus of a global fight over assisted reproduction.
CBC News. Digital. November 2018.
How Tumblr helped me find community and love
We found each other in the endless wastes of the internet.
Xtra Magazine. Digital. November 2018.
The ‘Farmosopher’ Creating Language for Our Climate Doom and Rebirth
Retired professor Glenn A. Albrecht has coined new words to describe the full range of positive and negative emotions we have toward the environment.
Vice. Digital. October 2018.
The Bruce McArthur Case Isn't True Crime—It's Queer Death
It’s wrong to treat these killings like a true crime story, instead of an ongoing case that has deeply affected Toronto’s queer community.
Flare. Digital. July 2018.
Scientist Loses Award After Acceptance Lecture Featured Students in Bikinis
The Herpetologists' League "regrets and apologizes for offensive content presented in the 2018 Distinguished Herpetologist lecture."
Vice. Digital. July 2018.
The Invisible Struggle Of Living With High-Functioning Depression
Today, in addition to taking daily antidepressants, I've managed to develop small and subtle ways to mitigate my depression and anxiety. I take several moments out of every day to focus on the gratitude I have for everything wonderful in my life and to reflect on what I am looking forward to in the future.
Refinery29. Digital. June 2018.
Sexual Harassment Is Driving Women Out of STEM and Slowing Down Scientific Advancement
In academic environments where sexual harassment is rampant, existing university policies protect institutions instead of women, who face significant barriers to pursuing careers in science, technology, and medicine.
Vice. Digital. June 2018.
70 Long-Lost Japanese Video Games Have Been Discovered in a 67GB Folder of ROMs on a Private Forum
Until yesterday, rare Japanese PC game Labyrinthe, developed by Caravan Interactive, was long thought to be lost forever. That is until the almost mythical third game in the already obscure Horror Tour series was found on a 67GB folder of ROMs on a private forum.
Vice. Digital. June 2018.
Obsessions: In Praise of Overalls, Summer's Gender-Neutral Fashion Icon
We’re obsessed with the versatility and comfort of this queer fashion favorite.
Them. Digital. May 2018.
When police fail marginalized communities, can online sleuths be of help?
The case of alleged serial killer Bruce McArthur highlights the thin line between crowdsourcing and retraumatization.
NOW Magazine. Digital. March 2018.
Why millennials are making memes about wanting to die
Millennials — who were born and raised on the internet and produce and consume much of their culture there — have had our whole lives characterized by economic anxiety. We have a dismal economic outlook, the worst of any generation born since the Great Depression. And our own culture-making — this kind of nihilistic, cynical humor epitomized in memes like eating Tide Pods — is merely a reflection of our worldview.
Salon. Digital. February 2018.
How memes are being weaponized for political propaganda
The populist form of communication accessible to anyone with MS Paint is also a crucial form of propaganda.
Salon. Digital. February 2018.
2017.
After Being Sexually Abused, I Let Myself Deteriorate
My earliest memory is of a courtroom. My mother places me into the witness stand and a huge microphone looms above my tiny body. I don’t understand what’s happening, but I know I feel scared. Here, as a 4-year-old child, I would stand witness in my own sexual-assault case.
New York Magazine. Digital. November 2017.
The “Game of Thrones” Superfans Who Want to Ruin it for Everybody
The Free Folk of Reddit live for spoilers, and don’t care if you can't handle it.
Narratively. Digital. August 2017.
Returning to the days of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" means hiding in fear, again
The United States government prides itself on setting an example to others, but is currently demonstrating that human rights are contestable.
HelloGiggles. Digital. July 2017.
Octavia E. Butler’s 1979 masterpiece, Kindred, ties the fate of Dana, black writer from the Californian 1970s to her white, slave-owning ancestor in antebellum Maryland. In 2017, this time-travel epic was adapted by illustrator John Jennings and writer Damian Duffy into a stunning graphic novel, one that’s already become a New York Times bestseller. Brooklyn Magazine spoke with both about their experiences with this classic of historical and science fiction.
Brooklyn Magazine. Digital. May 2017.
Is It Time To Retire "Mom" & "Dad"?
As we get more comfortable with the notion that gender is not binary, perhaps the way we look at families should change, too. Words like “mom” and “dad” are nothing more than gendered terms for people who raise children, after all, which means they’re restrictive. The ways that people enact these roles are evolving. Or, rather, the roles of “mom” and “dad” themselves are converging, and gender is becoming less of the point.
Refinery29. Digital. May 2017.
Why Sending Stephen Hawking to Space Matters
Despite having been told he would not make it past his 25th birthday, now 75-year-old renowned cosmologist and science author Stephen Hawking is being sent to space on billionaire Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic ship.
Paste Magazine. Digital. April 2017.